


Once Upon A Moment: Short Scenes

by elsmith



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Identity Reveal, Reveal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27635434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elsmith/pseuds/elsmith
Summary: A collection of Once Upon A Time one-shots that I've been floating around. Some may be expanded on later.First one-shot: Slight AU of immediately after the curse breaks, the others aren't aware of Gold's Enchanted Forest persona. That changes when Cora shows up in Storybrooke.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. Broken

**Author's Note:**

> This one-shot is partially AU – no Belle, Cora arrives faster and without Killian

The events around the breaking of the Dark Curse hadn’t unfolded quite the way he wanted, but Gold was still grateful. Living in cursed Storybrooke during the weeks between Emma’s arrival and the curse breaking had been very…frustrating. He had found it so difficult to play at “Mr. Gold” during that time, wanting nothing more than to tease Regina with his returned memories. Teasing her about their deals after Ms. Swan attacked the Mayor’s beloved apple tree with a chainsaw had been a risk, but he would have gone mad otherwise. Even then, it still took Her Majesty too long to realize he remembered. Going undetected for as long as he had had allowed Gold to help Emma just enough to push her along in breaking the curse.

Regina’s plot to frame Mary Margaret failing had pushed her to take desperate action, which in turn led to poor Henry eating the poisoned pastry meant for Emma. The two women coming to him for help had been too amusing, and it had been so easy to convince Ms. Swan to retrieve the potion from Maleficent.

From gossip he overheard in Granny’s, young Henry had actually died for a moment before Emma’s kiss revived him and broke the curse. Greatest magic of all, indeed. Gold had trekked back from the Wishing Well after pouring the potion in its restorative waters, following the billowing purple smoke into town. It was then that he heard about Henry’s miraculous recovery.

When he made it back into town Gold realized that magic was indeed in Storybrooke, but it was different. He could feel it in the air now, taste it and smell it, but he couldn’t reach it.

He was sitting in his usual booth and sipping tea, trying to prevent the fury at this setback from bubbling over. Gold didn’t want to make a scene at the moment, but he _needed_ the magic to work.

The bell above the door chimed but he didn’t stop glaring at his teacup to see who it was. The diner was unusually empty but he just assumed Storybrooke’s citizens were having soppy, tear-filled reunions with their loved ones and rejoicing that the curse was broken.

“Oh, Mr. Gold!” Mary Margaret was staring at him from the entry, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. “I didn’t think anyone was here, but I’m glad I found you.”

The incredulous expression on his face must have been very obvious because the Queen-turned-school teacher blushed prettily and stuttered out, “We’re having a meeting at the town hall to discuss the return of our memories and other um, issues.”

What in the hell was going on? Snow White was actually _inviting_ him to a town meeting?

Unperturbed by his lack of response, Snow flashed him one of her brilliant smiles and bounced back out of the diner, leaving him with a final comment that confused him more than the whole rest of the interaction:

“I’m Snow White, by the way! See you there, Mr. Gold!”

* * *

The town meeting had gone pretty much as he had expected, with Snow and Charming reassuring everyone that they would deal with Regina and keep the citizens safe. They also began to set up relief efforts to reunite the cursed inhabitants with their loved ones, as well as a plan to keep the town running while they figured things out. None of this had to do with Gold, or really even mattered to him, so he began shuffling out of the meeting hall with the others. He was stopped by Ms. Swan calling his name from the stage.

She jogged down the aisle to catch up with him at the door. “Hey, do you have a minute? We want to run some ideas by you on dealing with Regina.”

Smothering his shock, Gold nodded. “Of course, Ms. Swan.”

“Thanks.” She looked rather sheepish. “I know we haven’t always gotten along, but now that this curse stuff is real I need someone on my side who isn’t under her thumb.”

He figured her reasoning had been along these lines, but he was still surprised that Charming and Snow would deign to ask him for help after everything.

* * *

Cora making her way to Storybrooke had been a very unpleasant turn of events. Apparently, she had been lying in wait for the curse to be broken so she could travel to the Land Without Magic and reunite with her daughter. Without magic lending him the Sight, Gold couldn’t say one way or the other whether Regina would be amenable, so he kept throwing in his lot with the Charmings. They, along with their so-called council, were debating what they should (or even could) do about Regina and Cora.

Gold was silently observing the meeting when a frightened Dr. Hopper stumbled in, having been absent from the gathering thus far.

“Cora has a-a message,” he gasped, gripping his umbrella anxiously. “She wanted me to tell Mr. Gold that he is to meet them outside Granny’s in three hours or suffer the consequences.”

All eyes shifted to Gold as he rotated his cane, gaze unfocused. “Message received,” he acknowledged. Snow, Charming and Emma traded glances he couldn’t quite read, but it was no matter. He would discover what Cora wanted and hopefully send her on her merry way.

* * *

“Gold, you can’t go out there!” Emma protested, crossing her arms and glaring for all she was worth. Snow and Charming nodded in agreement from behind, although David didn’t manage to look as concerned as his wife.

“I think you’ll find I can, dearie,” he retorted. Gold and the Charmings were facing off just inside Granny’s. Henry, Ruby, and Granny herself were also huddled in the diner. Cora and Regina were in the street waiting for Gold to emerge and face their challenge.

“Whatever they want with you, it’s too dangerous. Cora can use her magic here, and for all we know Regina can too.” Snow was infuriatingly earnest and he hated that she was managing to make him feel even the smallest bit guilty. Gold had suspected that no one knew his true identity after the curse broke, and once Cora appeared he was sure. The Charmings and their sycophants had turned to him for help and were only mildly suspicious of his good will. Even the Savior and Henry hadn’t been too wary of him, only briefly questioning his intentions when he offered his services to help stop the witch. Not once had anyone mentioned his status as the ever feared but oft-consulted Dark One, and they all still called him Mr. Gold.

This ignorance of his Enchanted Forest self was certainly the cause of this concern for his safety, and he didn’t know if he should feel touched or queasy. He supposed it didn’t matter; one way or another they would find out. Cora was sure to see to that. Gold wished he didn’t understand why Regina would join forces with her mother after everything that woman had done, but he knew all too well what it was like to hate and love a parent in equal measure.

“Ms. Swan…”

“No. I’m still the sheriff, and I can’t let you risk yourself.” She was a stubborn one, but she would soon learn that Mr. Gold’s iron will was amplified a thousand fold in Rumplestiltskin, and he would not hide from the likes of Cora.

“Emma,” Gold tried again. “I appreciate your concern, truly, but I must do this.” He nodded at them all and turned on his heel, going for the door.

“Wait!” Henry shouted, interrupting Gold’s exit. The boy ran forward and threw his arms around the pawnbroker, surprising everyone in the diner. “Please be careful! Cora and my mom are two of the most dangerous magic users in my book.”

Still shocked at being hugged, Gold hesitantly patted Henry’s back. “Thank you, Henry. You needn’t worry about me.” He smirked a little as he pulled away from him, sure that the Charmings and other do-gooders were in for a surprise. True, he still couldn’t access his magic, but he was confident that he would come out on top. Ability to access magic or not, with it here he was functionally immortal.

Cora and Regina were waiting for him in the street outside the diner. Gold stifled a giggle at the ridiculousness of their little show, but he probably wasn’t one to throw stones. If he had his magic he’d be tempted to put them all in spurs and fringed vests.

As he approached the two women he heard the diner bell chime behind him. He wasn’t really surprised that the others followed him out, but he was a little annoyed by it. Cora was bound to say things he didn’t want anyone else knowing.

“Hello, love,” Cora purred. “It’s been so long. You’re looking…well.” She gave him a once-over, eyes glinting with mischief. He wanted to shower, immediately, and Regina looked fairly disgusted at her mother’s flirting.

“Why thank you, dearie. Wish I could say the same,” he retorted, stopping several feet away. Just because he was confident didn’t mean he was stupid.

Cora smirked at his snark. “That’s all right, dear, I’m sure we’ll make up eventually. After all, I’m here to offer my hand in friendship.”

An incredulous laugh bubbled out of him at that delusion. He didn’t know what her game was, but surely she knew he would never let her fool him again.

“I thought you might feel that way,” Cora said. She began to close the gap between them, a sly look flitting across her features. “I’m told your name here is Mr. Gold.” She paused.

“Yes, that’s my name.”

Her lips quirked up at some private amusement as she finally reached his personal space. “Regina has told me so much about this quaint little town. For instance, the lovely Snow and her ilk seem to not know who you are.”

Gold heard the others murmur at that. They hadn’t asked after his Enchanted Forest identity and he wasn’t sure if it was because they didn’t care or they were trying to respect some desire they thought he had to keep it private. If it wasn’t so annoying due to Cora’s glee he would be amused.

Cora’s elegant, wicked hand trailed along his shoulder before grasping onto his tie, slowly rubbing it as she smiled. “She also tells me that you’ve had trouble reaching the magic in this land, as she has.”

Snow, Henry, and the others actually gasped at that one, and he could hear Emma mutter, “He has magic?” to her companions.

“Indeed,” Gold acknowledged. There wasn’t a point in trying to deceive Cora about that if she already knew.

“Well,” Cora stopped her ministrations and patted his chest. “That’s such a shame. I would have helped you, if you only asked, but you insist on allying yourself with the rabble. I think I’ll do them a favor and show them who exactly they’ve decided to trust.”

Predicting something will happen and knowing it will are two different things, and at this declaration Gold felt a shiver of apprehension. He expected the worst from her, but she had managed to surprise him with her viciousness more than once.

Stepping back, Cora waved a hand and Gold felt himself immobilize. At the sounds of protest from behind, he knew she had done the same to the heroes. Regina was smirking at him from behind her mother, content to be a spectator for a change.

A vial with glowing green liquid appeared in Cora’s hand with a puff of smoke. “I made this just for you, once I heard,” she said conversationally, popping the stopper and cradling his face with one hand. His glare only seemed to amused her more. “You may scorn me now, _Mr. Gold_ , but I know the truth of you. Tell me, will you still have their trust once they know it too?”

Cora squeezed his jaw painfully, forcing his mouth open so she could pour the potion down his throat. It tasted vile, not that he expected any different. She pushed his jaw up and tilted his head back so he was forced to swallow, then stepped away.

The potion burned as it went down, sending fire shooting through his veins. A sheen of sweat broke out on his face and neck as the burning pain reached each extremity. But for Cora’s magic holding him, he would have collapsed to his knees from the intensity. He had known pain before, that was a given with the life he’d led, but this potion was made for agony as it tore along his very being from the inside out. If he were able to form a complete thought through the suffering he would have realized what the purpose of the elixir was, but he could not hold on to anything long enough to dread the result. Gold’s eyes squeezed shut in pain. Cora and Regina were laughing at his suffering, but he could barely hear them or the others’ protests over the rushing in his ears. He distantly realized Cora must have released him as he felt his palms scrape on the pavement. One hand came up to rub at his chest as he heaved for air, and he finally pried his eyes open to look up at his tormentor.

Cora’s eyes were alight with glee as she looked down at him, triumphant in besting him. He was too muddled still to know the full scope of what she’d done, but he needn’t have worried; she would make sure to deepen the wound as much as possible.

“Regina, dear, help our friend face his new allies,” she crooned, motioning Regina forward with an imperious wave of her hand.

Moments like this truly drove home how much like her mother Regina had become as she strode forward and used her – admittedly stylish – heel to push him towards Ms. Swan and the others.

Snow’s gasp was comically loud as David swore, Red uttered a soft “oh,” and Emma stuttered out “What the hell?”

He didn’t know if they had been released from Cora’s grip as well, but he must look horrible as he lay groaning on the ground. Gold’s body gave one last shudder as the potion finished working through him, and then he unexpectedly felt like it had never happened. In fact, he felt better than he had before.

“What the hell have you done?” he hissed, clambering onto his knees. He could feel some kind of actual chill in the air after he spoke, and it took a moment of reflection before he realized that his voice had pitched oddly. He flicked his eyes over to the heroes as Cora answered, and dread swelled like a wave as he registered their fear.

“I’ve only shown them the true you, my love,” she simpered.

Gold made it all the way to his feet and half-stepped towards his newest allies, but he paused as he saw his hand move in his periphery. He spun on his heel to face Cora, only partially noting the lack of pain in his bad ankle as he did.

“Oh, you’re playing with fire, dearie,” he warned, expression thunderous. No longer able to hold off the reality of what Cora had done, an impish grin took over his scowl. It only grew larger as Cora seemed unsettled by this unexpected reaction. “Well, well, well, it seems you’ve done me a favor,” he giggled. He gestured at the two sorceresses and froze them in place. “Magic’s not so far out of my grasp anymore, thanks to you lov-ely ladies.”

He sauntered over to them, circling as he laughed. “Now, what to do with you?” A mocking hand came up to rub his chin in contemplation before snapping in realization. He carefully did not look over to the Charmings and crew. “I know! An old favorite!” Another snap and a twist of the hand and both Queens disappeared in a swirl of smoke, leaving two snails in their places. He waved his hand in a careless gesture and a little cage formed around them. Before he could pick up the newly-invertebrate women, whatever had still been holding the others back dissipated.

“You lied to us!” David accused. When he turned to face the prince, he wasn’t surprised to see the man’s arms crossed in identical consternation to his daughter. Snow was chewing on her lip and Henry looked torn between excitement and worry for his mother the snail. Granny and Red just looked wary.

“I did not,” Rumplestiltskin pouted, magicking the snail cage into his hands. “And even if I had, I’ve just done you a favor, Prince Charming,” he added, trilling the “r” to annoy him.

“You let us believe-” Snow began, but he interrupted her with a scoff.

“I didn’t _let_ you do anything, dearie. I assumed you knew, and when it became clear you didn’t we were a bit, y’know, _busy_ ,” he gestured to Cora-the-snail.

“Still, if you had just told us-” This time she was interrupted by David’s incredulous look. “Fine, maybe not, but…” Snow trailed off.

“Okay, hold up. Will someone please explain to me what the hell is going on?” Emma burst out. “Why do we care that Gold is all… _gold?_ ”

“Because he’s Rumplestiltskin!” Henry said excitedly. “You are, aren’t you?”

Never one to resist an opportunity for theatricality, Rumple bowed deeply with a sweeping gesture at the boy. “Indeed, young prince.”

“The deal maker who spins straw into gold? Really?” Emma huffed, still struggling with the reality of the curse and everyone’s fairy tale identities. “I guess that makes as much sense as anything else in this place.”

“What’s your game, Dark One?” Granny accused, shifting the crossbow she suddenly had from one hand to another.

He pointed at himself and mouthed _me?_ Henry giggled and Rumple had to stifle his grin. The others looked patently unamused.

“No game,” he answered, not for one second thinking they’d believe him. It happened to be true, though. At least for the moment.

“How do you expect us to believe that?” Snow asked.

“I expect you can’t, dearie, but it’s the truth,” he shrugged.

Emma sighed heavily, squeezing the bridge of her nose as she thought. “Look, why don’t we regroup somewhere and talk about….this” she said, waving her hand at Rumple.

He knew they expected him to say no or just disappear on them, but Rumplestiltskin often delighted in being contrary. “Anything for you, Sheriff Swan. When you are ready, simply call my name and I’ll come,” he agreed, bowing again before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

“This is my life now, I guess,” Emma lamented, secretly appreciating the awkward pat on the shoulder from David and Snow’s encouraging smile.


	2. The Only Doctor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whale remembers who he was before the curse, but who has time to brood when they're the only actual doctor in Storybrooke?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is meh, but here you go.

Losing a patient was always hard, but it was especially heartbreaking when it was a child. In fact, Dr. Whale couldn’t remember the last time a patient had died; he knew it must’ve happened, but for as far back as he could remember he’d never lost a patient in Storybrooke. He didn’t know Henry all that well, but had heard that he was a sweet, good boy, in spite of Regina’s influence.

Telling Sheriff Swan and Mayor Mills that their son was dead had been hard. Both women looked broken at the news, and Whale was more than a little surprised when Regina sought comfort from him. He may be willing to do her bidding on occasion, but they were far from close. Emma bent down to kiss her boy one last time as Whale awkwardly rubbed Regina’s arms, and then he suddenly felt like he had fallen in the deep end of a pool and forgotten which way was up.

Regina pulled away and approached Emma and Henry, the latter of whom was now looking very lively for a having flat lined. Whale took a few uncertain steps forward, not knowing what else to do. His ears were ringing and everything was swimming. The Mayor fled the room after Mother Superior said something to her, but he couldn’t hear it. Whale was – no, he wasn’t. He wasn’t Whale. None of this had been real, Storybrooke wasn’t real. Something had happened and he was suddenly sure that Regina was to blame. This was her fault; she had done this, and he was going to make her pay. Victor would –

He sat down heavily in a chair at the foot of Henry’s hospital bed, suddenly dizzy. _I am Dr. Victor Frankenstein_ , he thought, head falling into his hand and eyes gazing blankly at nothing. His thoughts began spiraling and by the time he snapped out of it the room was empty. What should he do? Where should he go? He didn’t even really know what he was feeling, except for the anger. Knowing it was a bad idea, he fell into the torrent of emotion and let it pull him under. He knew what he had to do.

* * *

Had he not been so confused and overwhelmed by the breaking of the curse and the return of his memories, Victor would not have gone after Regina. Yes, he blamed her, and yes, she deserved to face justice. He could see now that he had not been thinking clearly, though, and he did regret his actions.

After the confrontation with David Nolan (apparently he was Prince Charming?!?), Victor had gone to the place he called home for the last twenty-eight years and slept for a couple hours. Ominous wails and crashes emanating from the direction of Main Street woke him. He was instantly alert and moving to grab his white coat and keys. Some ingrained instinct told him that his skills as a doctor were about to be needed, followed immediately by a question he dreaded having an answer for: Has anyone else at the hospital actually attended medical school?

Come to think of it, was there a medical school in the Enchanted Forest? And was he the only one from his land here in Storybrooke?

Victor shook himself back into motion, shelving the existential questions for later. Although the first might prove to be relevant in the immediate future.

* * *

Some sort of wraith was menacing Storybrooke, and according to the rumors it had been released by Gold – Rumplestiltskin – to go after Regina. Victor didn’t have any kind of time to care about that, though, between the patients coming in with broken bones and head injuries following the wraith’s wake of destruction. He had been in triage for nearly four hours when the influx of patients finally slowed down enough for him to collapse onto a chair.

This flood of patients at least answered one thing: he was definitely the only actual doctor in Storybrooke. On any given day that might not be a problem – the cursed town’s population wasn’t as big as it may seem – but when an emergency was happening, oh boy.

Victor was incredibly grateful that the next few days were quiet, but he still had to go in to the hospital every day for much longer than a normal shift. The other doctors in town were afraid to treat anyone now that they had their Enchanted Forest memories back and knew that they hadn’t actually attended med school. He had convinced them that treating colds and sprained wrists was well within their abilities – they still had the cursed memories, too – and had even convinced most of the nurses that they wouldn’t kill someone trying to remove stitches. Anything more serious than that, though, and he was it. Victor had decided not long after the curse broke that he wouldn’t mention that while he _did_ go to medical school, it was not in this so-called Land Without Magic. In some ways it was a transferrable knowledge base, but in others he was secretly relying on cursed memories too. His land didn’t have ultrasounds or other high-tech things like that, but he could at least say that he had enough medical knowledge to interpret the “newer” things.

The people of Storybrooke seemed to have settled down enough (something about having real medical care available with the knowledge that once it _hadn’t_ been was sending people to him with coughs and sneezes, seriously) that he was able to take an extended break and get some better-than-hospital quality coffee at Granny’s.

Victor was hunched over his cup at the diner’s bar, thinking about how unfair it was that he didn’t get to have an identity crisis like everyone else just because his skills were so important, when the door burst open and the diner’s customers erupted in cheers.

He turned towards the door with a sigh, wondering what new thing was going to cut his break short. David and Henry were there, faces beaming as they were followed closely by Mary Margaret and Emma.

“Look who’s back!” David proclaimed, one arm around each woman. One of the dwarves began clapping, and soon everyone had joined in. Victor managed a wan smile, but he was just too tired for anything else. If he hadn’t gone back to staring into the void over his coffee so quickly he might have seen David notice his apparent lack of enthusiasm.

“Got a problem, Whale?”

“Hmm?” He really shouldn’t be drinking coffee. He should have tried to nap at home.

“David,” Mary Margaret touched his back gently. “It’s fine. He looks exhausted.”

“You’re right. What’s going on with you, Whale? Plotting something?” David asked, arms crossed as he stared Victor down.

Emma seemed content to let David take the lead, and Victor couldn’t really blame her if it was true that they’d been in Enchanted Forest – who knew what state it was in.

Victor swiveled on his stool to face the new family. “Yes, I am tired. Being the only actual doctor in a cursed town will do that.”

His statement was met with a sea of surprised faces. Apparently no one else in the diner had known that either.

“You were a doctor in the Enchanted Forest?” Snow White was seemingly less awkward and timid than her cursed counterpart; he thought she’d never be able to meet his eyes again after their cursed fling.

“I doubt there were any doctors there, no. I’m not from the same land as you.”

“Then where are you from? Who are you?” Emma was interested in their conversation now.

Victor didn’t want to tell them. These people were literal fairytale characters, and although he knew they weren’t perfect by any means, they still had a different standard in their land. Not that his land really approved of his work either, but he didn’t want to be judged by a fairytale character’s cursed-memory perception of what this Land Without Magic thought of him.

The steely glint in Emma and David’s eyes, and the curious one in Snow’s, told him that he wouldn’t get away with not answering.

“Rumplestiltskin and Jefferson call my land he Land Without Color,” he sighed. “And my name is Dr. Victor Frankenstein.”

Too bad Archie wasn’t a cricket anymore, because his chirps could have been heard loud and clear in the silence that followed.

Victor took a sip of his coffee, much too tired to care if their brains were short-circuiting.

“Sure, why not,” Emma muttered.

“How…” David and Mary Margaret seemed baffled. “So literature is real? How does that work?”

Victor shrugged. “I come from a real land, although not this one. I had done business with Jefferson and Rumplestiltskin, and through them met the Queen. That’s why I’m cursed too. I wasn’t in the Enchanted Forest when it was cast.”

“And, um, just how much of your story is true?” Snow asked, likely not really wanting to know.

So many tired sighs today. He really needed a nap. “Enough.”

The whispers of the other patrons had started back up, but he was used to ignoring those. Honestly, whispered gossip was a breath of fresh air compared to being shot at or chased by an angry mob. The Charmings looked like they didn’t know where to go from here, and he didn’t really care one way or the other. He had a shift soon, and he really should get a nap in so he didn’t make any fatal mistakes.

Victor pulled a five out of his wallet for Ruby and stood. “I really should sleep before I head back to the hospital. Snow White, Emma, it’s nice to have you back. Please try to keep medical emergencies to a minimum. There’s only so much the cursed nurses and doctors can do now, and I may be talented but I am very, very tired.” He nodded at David, then left the diner.

Emma’s voice trailed after him as the door swung shut behind him. “He’s sure got the ego thing down.”


End file.
